メディエイゴ

Medical researchers(1) have for the first time shown a link between a father’s weight and diet at the time of conception(2) and an increased risk of diabetes(3) in his offspring(4).

The finding, reported in the prestigious(5) journal Nature, is the first in any species to show that paternal(6) exposure(7) to a high-fat(8) diet initiates(9) progression(10) to metabolic disease(11) in the next generation.

“We’ve known for a while that overweight(12) mums(13) are more likely to have chubby(14) babies, and that a woman’s weight before and during pregnancy(15) can play a role in(16) future disease in her children, partly due to(17) the critical role the intrauterine(18) environment plays in development(19),” said study leader Professor Margaret Morris, from UNSW(20)’s School of Medical Sciences(21).

“But until now, the impact of the father’s environment -- in terms of(22) his diet -- on his offspring had not been investigated.”

The work formed the basis of the PhD(23) study of Dr Sheau-Fang Ng, who showed that paternal environmental(24) factors such as diet and weight are important contributors(25) to disease in the next generation.

In the Nature study, male rats(26) were fed a high fat diet to induce(27) obesity(28) and glucose intolerance(29) and then mated with(30) normal weight(31) females. The resulting(32) female offspring exhibited impaired(33) glucose tolerance(34) and insulin secretion(35) as young adults(36).

“This is the first report of non-genetic(37), intergenerational transmission(38) of metabolic(39) consequences of a high fat diet from father to offspring,” Professor Morris said.

“A family history(40) of diabetes is one of the strongest risk factors(41) for the disease; however until now, the extent of any influence of non-genetic paternal factors has been unclear.”